Ford Escort vs. Nissan Sentra, Saturn SL, and Nine More Compact Cars

The average college student owns the following: an anthology of English verse (unopened), pizza knives, seventeen never-washed sweat­shirts, pizza trays, one clean sweatshirt for parental visits, pizza plates, four R.E.M. CDs, pizza napkins, a 120-ounce beer stein, pizza-stain remover, and an econ­omy-size bottle of Extra-Strength Tylenol.

Likewise, the average college student wants to own the following: a sharp set of wheels—brand-new, please.

So what does a college undergraduate look for in a new car, anyway?

First off, it has to be cheap to buy and economical to run—no car would be any good if it soaked up all the pizza money. But from there the priorities list gets a little fuzzy. Maybe one student wants to try out some of the physics he’s been studying with a g-generating performance car. Maybe another delights in the ribald plea­sures of road trips with friends—roomxis a priority there. A third might simply want lots of car for the money, a machine with amenities and comforts galore.

Hmmmm. Sounds like the same sort of priorities regular working stiffs go for, right? So, can any new car satisfy college kids and average Joes on the cheap—say, for under ten grand?

We arranged this comparison test to find out. The twelve cars pictured here represent all the major players available in the U.S. for less than $10,000—including, we decreed, air conditioning, a rear defroster, and an AM/FM radio. (Our Mazda 323 and Ford Escort test cars did not have radios, but both can be fitted with dealer-installed radios and remain under $10,000.)

Our field comprised both hatchbacks and sedans. All twelve cars are front-drive, and all were equipped with man­ual transmissions to help them stay under our pricing limit.

Conducting this comparison turned out to be more difficult than we envi­sioned. Not only did the sheer number of cars strain our technical staff (requir­ing a full instrumented test on each car, a comprehensive vital-statistics chart, and careful measurements of features and cargo room), but it made voting a night­mare. Cars were driven and redriven. Compared with close competitors. Driven again. And driven some more for good measure. Then came the fun part of trying to mete out points to twelve different machines.

Adding to the voting difficulty was a most unexpected element: the overall goodness of the field. Prior to assembling our players, we fully expected to find a few clear front-runners and a slew of obvi­ous also-rans. But after driving them, we came away astonished at how competent these under-$10,000 cars are. “I’m just amazed,” said one editor. “I’ve been in comparo tests of $30,000 luxury sedans where, say, one or two of the cockpits had real problems. But these little cars all pro­vide a clear view of the instruments, good ergonomics, and decent seats. They’re really impressive.”

Because a car priced under $10,000 doesn't have the resources to be all things to all people, we decided not to pick an overall winner but instead to choose vic­tors in three distinct categories: Most Fun to Drive, Best People Mover, and Best Value. Our usual Editors’ Ratings chart is also included for those who want to make direct comparisons from car to car.

In judging these econ majors, we made no compromises in our standards. Each car was evaluated against the same two criteria we apply to $80,000 sedans: “Could I live with it every day?” and “Would I actually consider buying it?”

In alphabetical order, then, we pre­sent our nine runners-up, followed by our three winners.